Printing machines, or printers, are often used to produce labels bearing legends, graphics, text, such as instructions or warnings, etc. A variety of printers may be used for this application, ranging for example from large industrial printers, to commonplace desktop printers, such as laser, thermal transfer, inkjet or dot matrix printers, to portable or hand-held printers, such as a hand-held thermal transfer label printer. Printers may print information on a variety of different materials, e.g., label rolls, label sheets, photographic paper, etc. For many labeling applications, printers print labels on continuous label media or a series of individual labels carried on a continuous liner or carrier. For example, the label media may be a roll of pressure sensitive tape that is attached by an adhesive to a liner. The printer may then print a series of legends along the tape, and the individual labels are formed by cutting through the tape and liner between each pair of legends to separate each individual label from the roll. The liner would then typically be removed so that the label can be applied to its desired location.
In many instances, where a series of labels are printed, a logical relationship exists among the labels. For example, the printer may produce all of the labels required to sequentially label the wires in an electrical cabinet. In this type of application, the user may struggle to keep individual labels organized so that the labeling task can be completed accurately and efficiently, particularly as the complexity of the labeling task increases. On the other hand, if the label media is not cut into individual labels, the user will need to manually and precisely cut each individual label from the label media, adding time and potentially introducing errors. Thus, an improved material cutter is needed.